Volvo S60: which years to buy, and what breaks on them
Best and worst years of the Volvo S60
Of the 17 model years of the Volvo S60 that carry enough owner reports to score, 2007 comes out best at 63 out of 100 and 2020 worst at 79. The scores rank each year against other cars of the same model year, so an older one is not penalised for having had longer to break.
1,684 owner reports across 25 model years, 1,199 of them carrying an odometer reading. 17 years carry enough reports to score.
The year to buy, and the year to avoid
Both figures are ranks against other vehicles of the same model year, so the two are comparable even when the years are a decade apart. Each links to that year's full report.
2007 Volvo S60
Best of 25 years on 34 owner reports, its own worst problem being headlight failure or clouding. Evidence behind the score: moderate confidence.
2020 Volvo S60
Risk 79 of 100 from 25 reports, worst problem other driver assistance problem.
Severe Moderate confidence confidence
How much the year actually matters
The gap between the best and worst year is 15 points on a 100-point scale, which is wide enough to be worth acting on when two cars are otherwise comparable.
Across every year of the Volvo S60, owners have filed 1,684 reports with NHTSA. The 2001 accounts for the largest share at 262, which can mean a genuinely troublesome year or simply the year that sold best and has been on the road longest.
What tends to break across the Volvo S60
Taking the most-reported failure from each model year, the recurring problems on the Volvo S60 are other speed control problem (worst mode in 3 years), other engine problem (worst mode in 3 years) and excessive oil consumption (worst mode in 3 years). A fault that heads the list in most years is characteristic of the design; one that heads a single year is usually a batch or a supplier.
Every model year, scored
Shorter is better, and the outlined row is the best year of the line. A year with too few reports to score is shown without a bar rather than as a zero, because no data is not the same as no problems.
| Year | Reports | Per 1,000 | Median report | Most reported problem | Recalls | Risk | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 Volvo S60 | 1 | 0.1 | — | Other steering problem | 0 | not rated | Unrated |
| 2001 Volvo S60 | 262 | 12.2 | 81k | Fuel pump failure | 9 | 69 | High confidence |
| 2002 Volvo S60 | 248 | 14.3 | 97k | Fuel pump failure | 9 | 70 | High confidence |
| 2003 Volvo S60 | 168 | 9.7 | 89k | Other speed control problem | 7 | 66 | High confidence |
| 2004 Volvo S60 | 262 | 15.2 | 80k | Other engine problem | 6 | 72 | High confidence |
| 2005 Volvo S60 | 57 | 3.3 | 65k | Other wheel or tire problem | 4 | 65 | Moderate confidence |
| 2006 Volvo S60 | 42 | 2.4 | 73k | Airbag failed to deploy in a crash | 4 | 64 | Moderate confidence |
| 2007 Volvo S60 | 34 | 2.0 | 54k | Headlight failure or clouding | 2 | 63 | Moderate confidence |
| 2008 Volvo S60 | 14 | 0.8 | 43k | Other speed control problem | 2 | not rated | Unrated |
| 2009 Volvo S60 | 9 | 0.5 | 88k | Other speed control problem | 3 | not rated | Unrated |
| 2011 Volvo S60 | 5 | 0.3 | 13k | Other wheel or tire problem | 6 | not rated | Unrated |
| 2012 Volvo S60 | 167 | 10.8 | 75k | Other engine problem | 8 | 77 | High confidence |
| 2013 Volvo S60 | 105 | 24.9 | 48k | Excessive oil consumption | 4 | 78 | High confidence |
| 2014 Volvo S60 | 35 | 8.3 | 8k | Excessive oil consumption | 3 | 77 | Moderate confidence |
| 2015 Volvo S60 | 81 | 19.2 | 50k | Excessive oil consumption | 2 | 76 | High confidence |
| 2016 Volvo S60 | 34 | 4.6 | 28k | Other engine problem | 4 | 71 | Moderate confidence |
| 2017 Volvo S60 | 17 | 2.3 | 27k | Sunroof failure or glass breakage | 5 | 67 | Low confidence |
| 2018 Volvo S60 | 5 | 1.2 | 44k | Master cylinder or brake booster failure | 1 | not rated | Unrated |
| 2019 Volvo S60 | 34 | 4.1 | 14k | Loss of braking | 4 | 78 | Moderate confidence |
| 2020 Volvo S60 | 25 | 3.7 | 8k | Other driver assistance problem | 4 | 79 | Moderate confidence |
| 2021 Volvo S60 | 14 | 8.0 | 70k | Electrical fire or melted wiring | 3 | not rated | Unrated |
| 2022 Volvo S60 | 28 | 16.1 | 42k | Tire blowout or tread separation | 4 | 64 | Moderate confidence |
| 2023 Volvo S60 | 3 | 0.3 | — | Timing chain, belt or tensioner failure | 6 | not rated | Unrated |
| 2024 Volvo S60 | 34 | 2.9 | 12k | Loss of braking | 3 | 72 | Moderate confidence |
| 2025 Volvo S60 | 0 | 0.0 | — | — | 2 | not rated | Unrated |
What each column means
Reports counts owner complaints filed with NHTSA against that model year. Filing is voluntary and unverified, so the count is a floor on how often something went wrong, never a census. It also rises with how many cars were sold, which is why the next column exists.
Per 1,000 divides those reports by an estimate of how many of that model year are on the road, so a common car and a rare one can be compared. The estimate comes from the vehicle counts in recall campaigns covering the same model year, which is the only per-model fleet figure published free of charge; where no recall covers a year, this column is blank rather than guessed.
Median report is the odometer reading at the midpoint of that year's reports: half of the readings owners gave were below it. It is a description of when problems get reported, not a prediction of when this car will break, and it needs at least eight readings before it is shown at all.
Risk is a 0–100 score combining how often reports arrive relative to fleet size, how serious they are, and how early they land, ranked against other vehicles of the same model year only. Confidence says how much evidence sits behind it: a low score on thin evidence is a shrug, not a clean bill of health. Both are defined in full on the methodology page.
Generations, and why the boundary matters
The Volvo S60 splits into generations: 2000–2004 (best 2003, worst 2004), 2005–2009 (best 2007, worst 2005), 2011–2018 (best 2017, worst 2013), 2019–2022 (best 2022, worst 2020) and 2023–2025. Comparing years inside one generation is the fair comparison — same body, same engines, usually the same suppliers.
Generation boundaries here are inferred from the pattern of model years in the data rather than taken from manufacturer documentation, so they are occasionally a year out. Where a boundary matters to a purchase, check it against the build date on the car.
| Generation | Years | Best year | Worst year | Spread |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000-2004 | 2000–2004 | 2003 Volvo S60 66 | 2004 Volvo S60 72 | 6 |
| 2005-2009 | 2005–2009 | 2007 Volvo S60 63 | 2005 Volvo S60 65 | 1 |
| 2011-2018 | 2011–2018 | 2017 Volvo S60 67 | 2013 Volvo S60 78 | 11 |
| 2019-2022 | 2019–2022 | 2022 Volvo S60 64 | 2020 Volvo S60 79 | 14 |
| 2023-2025 | 2023–2025 | — | — | — |
How to use this page
The honest way to read a table like this is worst-first: rule out the years with high scores and heavy complaint volume, then choose among the rest on condition, history and price. A low score is not a promise, and a high one is not a verdict on the specific car in front of you.
Every figure comes from owner complaints filed with NHTSA and from recall records, both voluntary in the sense that nobody audits them for completeness. Counts are floors. The AtWhatMileage methodology page sets out each formula.
Questions this page answers
What is the best year for the Volvo S60?
Of the model years we can rate, 2007 Volvo S60 scores best at 63 out of 100, based on 34 owner reports. 2020 scores worst at 79.
Which years of the Volvo S60 should you avoid?
2020 has the highest risk score in this model line at 79 out of 100. The scores compare each year against other vehicles of the same model year, so they are not affected by age alone.
How the generations are drawn. NHTSA does not publish generation boundaries, so ours are inferred from breaks in the recall and complaint record and from the model's own year range. They are close to the enthusiast consensus but not authoritative — if a boundary looks wrong for a car you know well, tell us and we will fix the table rather than argue with you.
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed